Flocked fabric and method for making same

ABSTRACT

There is disclosed a flocked fabric which is both highly drapeable and strong, and a method for making it. The fabric backing is napped prior to the application of adhesive thereto. The napping, or fiber maze, which extends from the fabric backing is entrained in the adhesive layer, as are the flock fibers. The fiber maze prevents the adhesive from substantially penetrating into the fiber backing and this, in turn, enhances the drapeability of the finished fabric and increases its tear strength.

United States Patent Dulin, Jr. Nov. 13, 1973 [54] FLOCKED FABRIC ANDMETHOD FOR 1,726,634 9/1929 Smith 161/67 M K G SAME 3,399,102 8/1968Matsushita et a1 161/67 [75] Inventor: G. N. Dulin, Jr., West Buxford,Primary Examiner wmiam Van Bale Mass 7 Attorney-George Gottlieb et al.[73] Assignee: Malden Mills, Inc., Lawrence, Mass.

[57] ABSTRACT [22] 1972 There is disclosed a flocked fabric which isboth [21] Appl. No.: 240,428 highly drapeable and strong, and a methodfor making it. The fabric backing is mapped prior to the application ofadhesive thereto. The napping, or fiber maze, [52] Cl 161/64 7 7 whichextends from the fabric backing is entrained in Int C Dosd 27/00 6 H/OOthe adhesive layer, as are the flock fibers. The fiber Fie'ld l6ll64 67166 maze prevents the adhesive from substantia11y pene- 1 trating intothe fiber backing and this, in turn, enhances the drapeability of thefinished fabric and in- References Cited creases its tear strength.

43 Claims, 11 Drawing Figures 1,681,327 8/1928 Eaton 161/67 Patented Nov.13, 1973 2 sheets-sheet 1 FIG. 2A

r M} W .3

FLOCKED FABRKC AND METHOD FOR MAKHNG SAME This invention relates toflocked fabrics and methods for making them, and more particularly tohighly drapeable and strong flocked fabrics which can be produced atlittle additional cost.

A conventional flocked fabric is made by coating a fabric backing with alayer of adhesive, and then embedding the ends of flock fibers in theadhesive. The latter step, which can be accomplished mechanically orelectrostatically, is followed by passing the fabric through a dryingand curing chamber. There are many variables which enter into the makingof flocked fabrics. For example, the backing fabric or substrate can beof many different types (e.g., knitted, woven, etc.), the flock fiberscan be made to simulate suede, velvet or an animal look, the finishedflocked surface can be crushed, etc. The present invention is generallyapplicable to all flocked fabrics and flocking processes.

It is well known that the adhesive greatly affects the physical andaesthetic characteristics of the final product. The two most importantcharacteristics in this regard are drapeability and tear strength, andthe adhesive has deleterious effects on both.

Many applications require the use of a drapeable fabric. Flocked fabricsare often unsuitable for these applications; even though the backingfabric may be sufficiently drapeable by itself, it becomes unacceptablystiff after a layer of adhesive is applied to it. For a yarnbased fabricto be drapeable, that is, for it to be sufficiently flexible to conformitself to a varying supporting shape, there must be relatively highthread mobility. A conventional woven fabric of the type as a substratefor a flocked fabric has the requisite thread mobility; the weave isoften loose and the warp and filling threads can move relative to eachother. But when it is coated by adhesive, the adhesive binds crossingthreads to each other and there is a considerable loss in the degree ofdrapeability. rapeability.

The second deleterious effect of the adhesive is that the tear strengthof the overall flocked fabric is usually considerably less than that ofthe backing alone. it might be thought that the tear strength should beincreased by binding crossing backing threads to each other, but in factthe opposite is the case. The tear strength of a woven fabric, forexample, depends upon the give or slip" of the threads of which it ismade. A high load on any individual thread causes all of the threads inthe vicinity of that thread to shift slightly and to assume a portion ofthe load. But when the threads are fixed in position they cannot shift,and the tear strength of a fabric coated with adhesive is sometimes onlyslightly higher than the breaking strength of an individual thread.While the tear strength of the final flocked fabric can be improved byusing fabric backings of special weaves, the addition of the adhesivegenerally results in a final tear strength which is no more than 60percent of that of the uncoated fabric backing.

Since it is the adhesive which both limits the drapeability and reducesthe tear strength of the flocked fabric (relative to the fabric backingalone), attempts have been made to improve the adhesives used in makingflocked fabrics. One approach taken is to add plasticizers so as toimprove the molecular lubricity and/or reduce the level of cross-linkagebetween the adhesive polymeric molecules. The resultant improvedmolecular mobility causes the cured adhesive to be more flexible and tosome extent mitigates the deleterious effects of the adhesive. However,it is not possible to achieve in the finished flocked fabric the initialdrapeability and tear strength of the backing. Furthermore, the solventresistance of the adhesive is usually reduced and the finished flockedfabric may be damaged during dry cleaning. Also, the use of plasticizersas described usually reduces the strength of the adhesive and it takesless force to pluck the flock off the face of the finished fabric.

it is an object of my invention to provide a flocked fabric which isalmost as drapeable as, and may be even stronger than, flocked fabricsmade of the same materials in the prior art.

In accordance with the principles of my invention, and considering as asingle example the case in which a woven fabric is used as the backingmaterial, the face of the backing to which the adhesive is applied isnapped prior to the adhesive application. Napping is a treatment wherebysmall steel hooks tear some of the fabrics, or the ends of the fibers,out of a yarn (warp, filling or both) so that the fabric acquires awholly or napped surface. The napping process makes the fabric softer tothe touch. It is a relatively widely used technique, and could be used(although it is generally not), for example, to make the underside(nonadhesive side) of the fabric backing softer to the touch. But therewould appear to be no reason to nap the adhesive side of the backingbecause in the finished product it is not exposed to view, cannot betouched, and is completely covered by the adhesive. Yet I havediscovered that by napping the fabric backing before the adhesive isapplied to it, the finished flocked fabric can be almost as drapeable asthe fabric backing alone, and the tear strength of the finished flockedfabric can be even higher than that of the fabric backing alone. in thepreferred embodiments of the invention, a tear strength equal to percentof that of the backing alone is attained.

When the fabric backing is napped, there results a dense fiber matrixlayer directly above the structural elements of the backing, and a lessdense intertangled fiber maze above it. The lower level is the moredense of the two because it contains the short as well as the longfibers which are torn or raised from the fabric yarn. The fibers aremore unidirectionally oriented in the lower level because the directionsin which they leave the yarn are centered around the perpendicular; inthe upper level the fiber orientations are far more random. All of thisis a natural consequence of the napping process, and the transitionbetween the two levels is gradual. When the adhesive is applied to thenapped backing, it penetrates the upper level maze but does notsubstantially penetrate the lower level matrix. Although some of theadhesive penetrates through the dense matrix to the structural yarnelements, most of the bottom surface of the adhesive does not touch thestructural elements. The degree of napping and the viscosity of theadhesive should be such that only a small portion of the structuralmembers of the backing are contacted by adhesive. After the adhesive isapplied, it is flocked in the usual manner.

The fact that the adhesive does not substantially penetrate the lowerlevel matrix can be verified as follows. In the case where only the warpyarns of the fabric backing are napped, for example, these yarns orthreads will be secured to the adhesive by way of the fibrous maze whichextends from them. But if little of the adhesive has penetrated thelower level fiber matrix, then the filling members of the fabric backingshould, for the most part, be unsecured to the adhesive layer. it is infact possible to grip the end of an individual filling thread withtweezers and pull it out of the fabric backing even after the ends ofthe flock fibers are embedded in the adhesive and the adhesive is cured.In one flocked fabric made in accordance with the principles of theinvention, it was possible to pull an eight-inch filling thread out ofthe fabric backing; only a few small, separated sections of the threadwere noticed to have adhesive on them. In the case where the backingfabric is napped in two directions, both the warp and filling membersare fixed to the adhesive by way of the fiber maze which extends fromboth. Although a thread is not easily pulled out of the fabricbacking,that the adhesive has not substantially penetrated the lower level fibermatrix is readily ascertainable by reason of the facts that the finishedflocked fabric is almost as drapeable as the fabric backing alone, andthe tear strength of the finished flocked fabric is usually greater thanthat of the backing alone.

The finished fabric is more drapeable because except for relatively fewareas in which the adhesive has penetrated through the fiber matrix tothe structural members of the backing fabric, there is a dense fibermatrix which separates the bottom surface of the adhesive and thestructural fabric. The absence of direct adhesive contact allows anysmall area of the fabric backing to shift slightly relative to theadhesive directly above it. The effect can be understood by analogizinga small area of the structural backing and the lower surface of theadhesive directly above it to two sides of a parallelogram, with theother two sides of the parellelogram corresponding to two of the fibersin the matrix which connect the backing to the adhesive. Just as any twosides of a parallelogram can shift relative to each other (assuming thatthe corners are jointed) so can the adhesive and the backing. it is thepotential of relative shifts on a microscopic level which makes thefinished flocked fabric almost as drapeable as the backing alone.

The adhesive necessarily penetrates the fiber matrix to differentextents in different regions. Ideally, in all regions the adhesiveshould penetrate just up to the structural backing but should not touchit. If there is in sufficient penetration, the relatively long fiberswhich interconnect the backing to the adhesive may permit permanentmacroscopic shifts, that is, relatively large non-restoring shifts ofsubstantial areas of the adhesive and backing relative to each other.This gives rise to an alligator or crinkling effect which may beobjectionable in some fabrics. What is desired are microscopic shiftswhich provide for a suitably drapeable fabric without the possibility ofmacroscopic shifts which can cause a fabric to lose its aesthetic appealduring use. These considerations, of course, are qualitative only;quantitative measurements are not only difficult to make, but equallydifficult to define due to the random degree of penetration of theadhesive in different regions of the fiber matrix. But by varying thedensity of the nap or the viscosity of the adhesive (which togethercontrol the degree of adhesive penetration of the lower level fibermatrix), it is possible to vary the characteristics of a finishedflocked fabric until a fabric suitable for the purpose at hand isproduced.

Because little adhesive penetrates the fiber matrix all the way throughto the fabric backing, the yarns in the fabric backing, for the mostpart, do not adhere to each other. Thus, there is little loss in theslip" or tear strength of the backing, Furthermore, the adhesive adds tothe overall tear strength. This is because, unlike the prior art, theadhesive layer is not simply a layer of pure adhesive (with the ends ofthe flock fibers embedded in it, which fibers have almost no effect onthe tear strength of the adhesive). The adhesive layer contains anintertangled fiber maze, and this maze reinforces the adhesive. Theeffect is much the same as that achieved by reinforcing concrete. in oneexperiment, the adhesive was applied to a fiber maze which was separablefrom its backing. After the flocking and curing steps, the backing wasremoved. The final flocked fabric was thus simply a reinforced adhesivelayer containing the ends of the flock fibers Surprisingly, considerableeffort was required to tear the adhesive. it is apparent that when theadhesive is applied to a backing having a fiber maze extending from it,the overall tear strength of the finished flocked fabric can be greaterthan that of the backing alone. The nap on the backing, at least in theupper level, should take the form of a fiber maze (as opposed to aunidirectionally oriented layer of f1- bers) in order to maximize thestructural cross-linking and the adhesive reinforcement.

An added advantage of the flocked fabric of my invention is that it ismore breatheable than a flocked fabric made the same way but whosebacking is not provided with a fiber maze. Couch fabrics, for example,must be able to breathe" or a cushion covered with such a fabric willballoon when someone sits on it; similarly, fabrics which cannot breatheare not suitable for wearing apparel. In the prior art, breatheabilityhas been introduced into a flocked fabric by foaming the adhesive priorto its application to the backing. But this weakens the adhesivestrength of the adhesive and may result in some of the flock fibersfalling out during use. l have found that a flocked fabric made inaccordance with the principles of my invention often has a satisfactorydegree of breatheability even without foaming of the adhesive. When theadhesive is applied to the fabric backing, the fibers in the maze arepushed down toward the fabric backing. But because they are resilientthe fibers spring back and, in so doing, they create microscopic voidsin the adhesive which are then made permanent when the adhesive iscured. These voids are sufficient in many cases to provide the necessarybreatheability without foaming of the adhesive. l have also found thatsuch a fabric, when treated with a florocarbon to provide water, oil andsoil repellancy, demonstrates a higher degree of water proofness than afabric which includes a conventional backing and a foamed adhesive. itis believed that this is due to the fact that the pores which arecreated when the fibers in the maze spring back are extremely small andtubular as compared to those which result when a foamed adhesive is usedand which produces globular pores.

An added advantage of using a backing having a fiber maze extending fromit is that the flock fibers in the finished product are held morestrongly. The result is achieved for the following reason. When a fiberis plucked from a fabric one of two things can happen. Ei-

ther the fiber is released by the adhesive, or the adhesive shears. Inthe latter case, the plucked end of the flock fiber exhibits a coatingof adhesive around it which was sheared from the surrounding adhesive inthe product. Because of the structural cross-linking characteristic ofthe fiber maze, the shear strength of the adhesive is greatly increasedand the second type of flock removal is less likely to occur.

Yet another advantage of my invention is that the finished flockedfabric is more likely to stand up to repeated dry cleaning. When afabric is ruined during dry cleaning, it is generally because theadhesive is attacked by the solvents used; when this happens, the toppart of the adhesive layer may be stripped from the bottom part, inwhich case the flock facing is separated from the backing. But thestructural reinforcement of the adhesive by the fiber maze makes theadhesive much more resilient to dry cleaning solvent. In this regard, itis preferable that the fiber maze extend all the way to the top of theadhesive layer. This is easily achieved by insuring that the thicknessof the maze prior to the application of the adhesive is greater than thefinal thickness of the adhesive layer. As a napped woven fabric, forexample, is moved through an adhesive applying station, the fibers inthe maze are forced against the structural backing and the adhesive isapplied over them. As described above, the fibers then spring back. Theyspring back all the way to the upper surface of the adhesive and theyare held there by the surface tension of the adhesive. In fact, if thecoated backing is examined prior to the flocking operation, many of thefibers in the maze are visible in the upper surface of the adhesive.

In the case of a yarn-based fabric, the adhesive should penetratethrough the lower level fiber matrix to the extent that preferably lessthan percent of the yarn cross-points in the backing become fixed,although the advantages of the invention are readily apparent if no morethan 35 percent of the cross-points are affected in this way. It isimportant to note that while the napping of a conventional woven fabricbacking is a relatively inexpensive and simple way to create thenecessary fiber maze, with some types of backing it is not evennecessary to provide the napping step. For example, knitted fabricbackings made from extraordinarily fuzzy yarns may have a sufficientnatural fiber maze. Similarly, non-woven fabric backings may be made inthe first place to have the requisite fiber maze on one surface. Ingeneral, whatever backing material is used, it should exhibit a fibermaze, with the average length of each fiber in the maze being at leasttwo times as great, and preferably at least five times as great, as thethickness of the adjesive layer which is applied to it. Furthermore, aflocked fabric made in accordance with the principles of my inventionexhibits a tear strength which is at least 80 percent as high as thetear strength of the backing alone, although in many cases the tearstrength of the finished product even exceeds that of the backing alone.

Further objects, features and advantages of the invention will becomeapparent upon consideration of the following detailed description inconjunction with the drawing in which:

FIG. 1A is a cross-section of a typical prior art woven fabric used asthe backing for a flocked fabric;

FIG. 1B is a cross-section of a typical prior art flocked fabric madewith the backing of FIG. 1A;

FIG. 2A is a cross-section of a typical napped woven fabric which may beused as the backing for a flocked fabric made in accordance with theprinciples of my invention;

FIG. 2B is a cross-section of a typical flocked fabric made with thebacking of FIG. 2A;

FIG. 3 is a cross-section of an individual yarn in the backing fabric ofFIG. 1A;

FIG. 4 is a cross-section of an individual warp yarn in the backingfabric of FIG. 2A;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged sectional view of a portion of the prior artflocked fabric of FIG. 1B;

FIG. 6 is an enlarged sectional view of a portion of the flocked fabricof FIG. 28;

FIG. 7 is a partial sectional view taken through an individual warp yarnof the fabric of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a partial sectional view taken through an individual fillingyarn of the fabric of FIG. 6; and

FIG. 9 illustrates an illustrative process for making flocked fabrics inaccordance with the principles of my invention.

The prior art woven fabric backing 10 of FIG. 1A consists of warp yarns14 and filling yarns 16. Prior art woven fabrics used as backings forflocked fabrics have not been napped deliberately, nor have any of theprior art backing materials exhibited the fiber maze of my invention. Ofcourse, any yarn-based fabric exhibits some small (inconsequential)fiber ends, shown at 16 in FIG. 1A. Similar fuzz may be present onfillings 12, although not shown in the drawing. FIG. 3 is acrosssectional view taken through one of warp yarns 14. (The fiber ends16 are not shown in FIGS. 1B and 5 because of their lack of importanceand for the sake of clarity).

The flocked fabric of FIG. 1B exhibits a layer of adhesive 18 on top ofthe fabric backing 10. Each of flock fibers 20 has one end embedded inthe adhesive layer. The drawing of FIG. 1B is not to scale (similarremarks apply to the other figures). In general, the flock fibers aremuch more densely packed than is shown in the various drawings.Typically, the flock fibers are precision cut so that they all have thesame length. Since the various fibers extend into the adhesive todiffering degrees, the upper ends of the fibers are not all at the samelevel. However, the percentage difference is not nearly as noticeable inan actual fabric as it is in the drawing primarily due to the fact thatthe adhesive layer 18 is much thinner in an actual fabric relative tothe length of the flock fibers than it is as shown in the drawing.

FIG. 5 is an enlarged sectional view of a portion of the fabric of FIG.13. Here it is seen that the adhesive 18 contacts both the warp andfilling yarns in the woven fabric backing. The yarn cross-points are ineffect locked together and, as described above, it is for this reasonthat the finished flocked fabric is not as drapeable as the fabricbacking alone, nor does its tear strength appraoch that of the latter.

When a woven fabric is used as the backing for a flocked fabric made inaccordance with the principles of my invention, it exhibits the napshown in FIG. 2A. The structural fabric consists of warp yarns 34 andfilling yarns 32. In a conventional napping process, fibers are tornfrom either the warp or the filling, although it is possible to tearthem from both. In the fabric of FIG. 2A, the nap is produced by tearingthin fibers from the warp yarn. The surface of the fabric which isnapped is that to which the adhesive is later applied. (The undersurfaceof the fabric backing can also be napped if it is desired for it to havea soft feel.) Directly above the structural backing there is a densematrix 36a of fibers, while at the top of the nap the fibers are lessdense and are in an intertangled maze 36b. The lower level is more densebecause it includes both the short fibers as well as the longer fiberswhich extend up into the upper level maze. in the dense level, thefibers are relatively unidirectional in that the fibers in any smallincremental area are all more or less oriented perpendicularly to theyarn surface. But in the upper level the fibers are intertangled so asto provide maximum reinforcement for the subsequently applied adhesive.The average length of each fiber is preferably five times as great asthe thickness of the adhesive layer which is subsequently applied. Thereis also a small degree of napping, shown by the numeral 360, on theundersurface of the backing. Although only the upper surface of thefabric is napped, some fibers are necessarily torn from the lowersurface. The lower-surface napping is not a necessary characteristic ofthe fabric backing which is used in accordance with the principles of myinvention. FIG. 4 depicts a cross-section through one of warp yarns 3dand illustrates the three nap regions of inter SI.

After adhesive 38 (H65. 213 and 6) is applied to the fabric backing andflock fibers 40 are embedded in it, the outward appearance of the fabricis the same as that of the fabric of FIGS. 2A and 5.. However, there aretwo important differences. First, the bottom surface 38 of the adhesivelayer makes minimal contact with the structural backing members. As theadhesive is applied to fiber maze 36b, it penetrates the maze andpartially penetrates the fiber matrix 36a. However, ralatively little ofthe adhesive penetrates all the way through the dense matrix to thestructural yarns 32 and 34. ln FIG. 2B, the adhesive is shown touchingonly one of the fillings 32 and only one point on the warp yarn 3 0. Ontop of substantially all of the fabric backing, and separating the uppersurface of the fabric backing from the under surface of the adhesive,there is a dense fiber matrix 360. Preferably, less than percent of thecrossing yarns are adhered to each other, that is, more than 90 percentof the cross-points are Tree.

As described above, the fibers in this matrix function as parallelogramlinkages between incremental areas of the fabric backing and theadhesive layer. This is seen most clearly in FIG. 7 which depicts across-sectional view of warp yarn 34. Here it is seen that many fiberstrands in matrix 364: extend from warp yarn 3a to the undersurface 38'of the adhesive directly above it. PEG. 8 shows a filling yarn 32disposed underneath adhesive undersurface 38. Since in the illustrativeembodiment of the invention it is the warp yarns which are napped, thereis little linkage between fillings 32 and the adhesive. In fact, in manycases it is relatively easy to pull the fillings out of the backingfabric of the finished product as described above.

The second major difference between the products of the two sets offigures is that adhesive layer 18 of the improved product of myinvention contains an entrained fiber maze 35b. This is the fiber mazewhich serves to reinforce the adhesive. Preferably, for maximum solventresistance, the fiber maze extends to the upper surface of the adhesiveas shown in the drawing and every part of the adhesive encapsulates aportion of the fiber maze.

In one embodiment of the invention, the warp yarn was made of polyester3d/f, and the filling yarn was made of polyester cotton (5050). The sizeof the warp yarn was 13.4-single and the size of the filling yarn was6.5-single. All yarns had round cross sections; the filling yarns weresemi-dull and the warp yarns were semidull. The backing fabric weighed4.2 ounces per square yard, the warp had a density of 32 ends/inch andthe filling had a density of 20 picks/inch. The adhesive layer was 7mils thick and the average length of a fiber in the nap was 35 mils. Theadhesive was a latex-based acrylic with a viscosity of 42,500. The flockfibers were made of type 66 nylon 6 d/f, had a bright trilobalcrosssection, were 3 millimeters in length, and were deposited on theadhesive at various densities in different applications which yielded5-15 grams of nylon per square foot of fabric.

in general, the extent to which the adhesive penetrates the lower levelfiber matrix depends upon the densities of the fiber maze and the lowerlevel matrix, and the viscosity of the adhesive; the higher theviscosity and the more dense the fibers, the less the penetra tion. Forvelvet-type fabrics the adhesive viscosity should be in the range35,00065,000 centipoise, as measured on a Brookfield viscometer using aNo. 4 spindle rotating at 6 rpm. For suede-type fabrics, an adhesivewith a viscosity in the range 60,000 120,000 centipoise can be used;this is due primarily to the fact that a suede fabric is provided with avery thin layer of adhesive and the flock fibers need not penetrate toofar into the adhesive layer. For suede-type fabrics, the adhesive layeris preferably less than 0.6 millimeters thick, and for velvet-typefabrics the adhesive layer can have a thickness in the range 0.42millimeters.

FlG. 9 depicts an illustrative apparatus for making flocked fabrics inaccordance with the principles of my invention. A woven fabric backing30 is passed over rollers 54 and around drum 50 which rotates in thedirection of arrow 52. Around the drum there are peripheral rollers 58(only four of which are shown). The rollers are covered with closelyspaced steel hooks 5%; although all of the rollers rotate in the samedirection, the hooks are curved in opposite directions on alternaterollers. As the drum rotates faster than the fabric moves, fibers aretorn from the fabric and the height of maze 36 progressively increasesas shown. Any conventional napping apparatus can be used to create themaze (if such a maze is not already present as a result of earlier stepsin the backing processing).

The fabric backing then passes over a roller 60 on top of which there ispositioned an adhesive applicator dd and a blade 62. The blade is set ata height above the upper surface of the structural backing which determines the thickness of the adhesive layer. After leaving the adhesiveapplication stage, there is a reinforced layer of adhesive 38 on top ofthe fabric backing as described above.

The fabric then passes through a conventional flocking stage '70 inwhich the flock fibers are embedded in the adhesive. The flocked fabricthen passes through a drying and curing stage 72, after which it isrolled up on a roll 74. The processing steps are basically those of theprior art; the major difference in producing the finished product isthat the backing which is used contains a fiber maze on the surface towhich the adhesive is applied.

Although the invention has been described with reference to particularembodiments, it is to be understood that these embodiments are merelyillustrative of the application of the principles of the invention. Forexample, I have found that the fibrous maze greatly reduces thepercentage reduction in fabric flexibility as temperature is lowered;this allows flocked fabrics of my invention to be particularly useful asouterwear without any sacrifice in solvent resistance. Thus it is to beunderstood that numerous modifications may be made in the illustrativeembodiments of the invention and other arrangements may be devisedwithout departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

What I claim is:

l. A flocked fabric comprising a fibrous textile substrate with afibrous maze extending therefrom, a layer of adhesive encapsulating saidfibrous maze with most of the undersurface of said adhesive layer beingin noncontact relationship with said substrate, and flock fibersembedded in and extending out from the upper surface of said adhesivelayer.

2. A flocked fabric in accordance with claim 1 wherein said substrate isa yarn-based fabric and said adhesive layer fixes less than 35 percentof the crossing yarns in said substrate to each other.

3. A flocked fabric in accordance with claim 1 wherein said substrate isa yarn-based fabric and said adhesive layer fixes less than 10 percentof the crossing yarns in said substrate to each other.

4. A flocked fabric in accordance with claim 1 wherein the averagelength of each fiber in said maze is at least twice as great as thethickness of said adhesive layer.

5. A flocked fabric in accordance with claim 1 wherein the averagelength of each fiber in said maze is at least five times as great as thethickness of said adhesive layer.

6. A flocked fabric in accordance with claim 1 wherein the tear strengthof the flocked fabric is at least 80 percent of the tear strength ofsaid fibrous textile substrate alone.

7. A flocked fabric in accordance with claim 1 wherein the tear strengthof the flocked fabric is greater than the tear strength of said fibroustextile substrate alone.

8. A flocked fabric in accordance with claim 1 wherein said fibrous mazeis contained within said adhesive layer from' the bottom to the topsurfaces thereof.

9. A flocked fabric in accordance with claim 8 wherein the fibers insaid maze are progressively intertangled from the bottoms to the topsthereof.

10. A flocked fabric in accordance with claim 1 wherein the fibers insaid maze are intertangled to reinforce said adhesive layer.

11. A flocked fabric comprising a substrate having a fiber mazeextending therefrom, a layer of adhesive encapsulating said fiber maze,and flock fibers embedded in and extending out from the upper surface ofsaid adhesive layer, the average length of a fiber in said maze being atleast two times as great as the thickness of said adhesive layer.

12. A flocked fabric in accordance with claim ll wherein said substrateis a yarn-based fabric and said adhesive layer fixes less than 35percent of the crossing yarns in said substrate to each other.

13. A flocked fabric in accordance with claim 11 wherein said substrateis a yarn-based fabric and said adhesive layer fixes less than 10percent of the crossing yarns in said substrate to each other.

14. A flocked fabric in accordance with claim 11 wherein the tearstrength of the flocked fabric is at least percent of the tear strengthof said substrate alone.

15. A flocked fabric in accordance with claim 11 wherein the tearstrength of the flocked fabric is greater than the tear strength of saidsubstrate alone.

16. A flocked fabric in accordance with claim 11 wherein said fiber mazeis contained within said adhesive layer from the bottom to the topsurfaces thereof.

17. A flocked fabric in accordance with claim 11 wherein the fibers insaid maze are progressively intertangled from the bottoms to the topsthereof.

18. A flocked fiber comprising a fibrous textile substrate having afiber maze extending therefrom, an adhesive layer disposed above saidsubstrate and encapsulating said fiber maze, and flock fibers embeddedin and extending out from the upper surface of said adhesive layer, saidadhesive layer making only limited contact with said fibrous textilesubstrate such that the tear strength of the flocked fabric is at least80 percent of the tear strength of the fibrous textile substrate alone.

19. A flocked fabric in accordance with claim 18 wherein said adhesivelayer encapulates said fiber maze such that the maze extends all the waythrough the adhesive layer from the bottom surface to the top surfacethereof.

20. A flocked fabric in accordance with claim 18 wherein the averagelength of each fiber in said maze is at least twice as great as thethickness of said adhe sive layer.

21. A flocked fabric in accordance with claim 18 wherein the averagelength of each fiber in said maze is at least five times as great as thethickness of said adhesive layer.

22. In a flocked fabric having an adhesive layer and flock fibersembedded in and extending out from the upper surface thereof, theimprovement comprising a fibrous maze contained within and forreinforcing said adhesive layer.

23. A flocked fabric in accordance with claim 22 wherein the averagelength of each fiber in said maze is at least twice as great as thethickness of said adhesive layer.

24.. A flocked fabric in accordance with claim 22 wherein the averagelength of each fiber in said maze is at least five times as great as thethickness of said adhesive layer.

25. A flocked fabric in accordance with claim 24 wherein said fibrousmaze is contained within said adhesive layer from the bottom to the topsurfaces thereof.

26. A flocked fabric in accordance with claim 22 wherein said fibrousmaze is continued within said adhesive layer from the bottom to the topsurfaces thereof.

27. A flocked fabric in accordance with claim 26 wherein the fibers insaid maze are progressively intertangled from'the bottoms to the topsthereof.

28. A method for making a flocked fabric comprising the steps of forminga backing having a fibrous maze extending therefrom, said fibrous mazehaving a density sufficient to prevent subsequently applied adhesivefrom substantially penetrating therethrough to said backing, applying anadhesive layer to the surface of said backing from which said fibrousmaze extends, and embedding flock fibers in the upper surface of said adhesive layer.

29. A method for making a flocked fabric in accordance with claim 28wherein the flock fibers embedded in said adhesive layer have a velvetappearance and the viscosity of said adhesive is in the range 35,00065,000 centipoise, as measured on a Brookfleld viscometer using a No. 4spindle rotating at 6 rpm,

30. A method for making a flocked fabric in accordance with claim 28wherein the flock fibers embedded in said adhesive layer have a suedeappearance and the viscosity of said adhesive is in the range60,000-120,000 centipoise, as measured on a Brookfield viscometer usinga No. 4 spindle rotating at 6 rpm.

31. A method for making a flocked fabric in accordance with claim 28wherein said backing is a yarnbased fabric and said fibrous maze isformed by napping a surface thereof.

32. A method for making a flocked fabric in accordance with claim 3wherein said fibrous maze extends above said backing a distance which isgreater than the thickness of the adhesive layer subsequently applied tosaid backing, and said fibrous maze is caused to be substantiallycompletely encapsulated by said adhesive layer when it is applied tosaid backing.

33. A method for making a flocked fabric in accordance with claim 28wherein said fibrous maze extends above said backing a distance which isgreater than the thickness of the adhesive layer subsequently applied tosaid backing, and said fibrous maze is caused to be substantiallycompletely encapsulated by said adhesive layer when it is applied tosaid backing.

34. A method for making a flocked fabric in accordance with claim 28wherein said fibrous maze is formed such that the average length of afiber therein is at least twice as great as the thickness of thesubsequently applied adhesive layer.

35. A method for making a flocked fabric in accordance with claim 28wherein said fibrous maze is formed such that the average length of afiber therein is at least five times as great as the thickness of thesubsequently applied adhesive layer.

36. A method for making a flocked fabric in accordance with claim 28wherein the density of said fibrous maze is high enough and theviscosity of the applied adhesive is low enough to sufficiently preventthe applied adhesive from penetrating through said fibrous maze to saidbacking such that the tear strength of the flocked fabric is at leastpercent of the tear strength of said backing alone.

37. A method for making a flocked fabric in accordance with claim 28wherein the density of said fibrous maze is high enough and theviscosity of the applied adhesive is low enough to sufficiently preventthe applied adhesive from penetrating through said fibrous maze to saidbacking such that the tear strength of the flocked fabric is greaterthan the tear strength of said backing alone.

38. A method for making a flocked fabric in accordance with claim 28wherein said adhesive layer is applied to said backing such that saidfibrous maze extends all the way through the adhesive layer from thebottom surface to the top surface thereof.

39. In a method for making a flocked fabric in which flock fibers areembedded in and extend out from the upper surface of an adhesive layer,the improvement comprising the step of encapsulating a fibrous mazewithin and for reinforcing said adhesive layer.

40. A method for making a flocked fabric in accordance with claim 39wherein the average length of each fiber in said maze is at least twiceas great as the thick ness of said adhesive layer.

41. A method for making a flocked fabric in accordance with claim 39wherein the average length of each fiber in said maze is at least fivetimes as great as the thickness of said adhesive layer.

42. A method for making a flocked fabric in accordance with claim 39wherein said fibrous maze is made to extend from the lower surface ofsaid adhesive layer through said adhesive layer to the upper surfacethereof.

43. A method for making a flocked fabric in accordance with claim 39wherein the fibers in said maze are controlled to be progressivelyintertangled from the bottoms to the tops thereof.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE" CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No. 3 2Dated November 13, 1973 Invento r(s) n, Jr.

It is certified that error appears in the above-identified patent andthat said Letters Patent are hereby corrected as shown below:

Column 1, line 34, "used" shouldappear after "type".

Column 1, line 40, "rapeability. should be deleted.

Column 5, line 18, "resilient" should read "resistant".

Signed and sealed this 21st day of Ha 1971+.

SEAL) Atte st:

Bill- AH .FLETGIEQRJR. J. L'IARSl-IALL DALE? Attesting OfficerCommissioner of Patents FORM 0-1050 (10-69) USCOMM.DC 5Q376.p5g

9 Hrs GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 5 I9, 0-366-3,

2. A flocked fabric in accordance with claim 1 wherein said substrate isa yarn-based fabric and said adhesive layer fixes less than 35 percentof the crossing yarns in said substrate to each other.
 3. A flockedfabric in accordance with claim 1 wherein said substrate is a yarn-basedfabric and said adhesive layer fixes less than 10 percent of thecrossing yarns in said substrate to each other.
 4. A flocked fabric inaccordance with claim 1 wherein the average length of each fiber in saidmaze is at least twice as great as the thickness of said adhesive layer.5. A flocked fabric in accordance with claim 1 wherein the averagelength of each fiber in said maze is at least five times as great as thethickness of said adhesive layer.
 6. A flocked fabric in accordance withclaim 1 wherein the tear strength of the flocked fabric is at least 80percent of the tear strength of said fibrous textile substrate alone. 7.A flocked fabric in accordance with claim 1 wherein the tear strength ofthe flocked fabric is greater than the tear strength of said fibroustextile substrate alone.
 8. A flocked fabric in accordance with claim 1wherein said fibrous maze is contained within said adhesive layer fromthe bottom to the top surfaces thereof.
 9. A flocked fabric inaccoRdance with claim 8 wherein the fibers in said maze areprogressively intertangled from the bottoms to the tops thereof.
 10. Aflocked fabric in accordance with claim 1 wherein the fibers in saidmaze are intertangled to reinforce said adhesive layer.
 11. A flockedfabric comprising a substrate having a fiber maze extending therefrom, alayer of adhesive encapsulating said fiber maze, and flock fibersembedded in and extending out from the upper surface of said adhesivelayer, the average length of a fiber in said maze being at least twotimes as great as the thickness of said adhesive layer.
 12. A flockedfabric in accordance with claim 11 wherein said substrate is ayarn-based fabric and said adhesive layer fixes less than 35 percent ofthe crossing yarns in said substrate to each other.
 13. A flocked fabricin accordance with claim 11 wherein said substrate is a yarn-basedfabric and said adhesive layer fixes less than 10 percent of thecrossing yarns in said substrate to each other.
 14. A flocked fabric inaccordance with claim 11 wherein the tear strength of the flocked fabricis at least 80 percent of the tear strength of said substrate alone. 15.A flocked fabric in accordance with claim 11 wherein the tear strengthof the flocked fabric is greater than the tear strength of saidsubstrate alone.
 16. A flocked fabric in accordance with claim 11wherein said fiber maze is contained within said adhesive layer from thebottom to the top surfaces thereof.
 17. A flocked fabric in accordancewith claim 11 wherein the fibers in said maze are progressivelyintertangled from the bottoms to the tops thereof.
 18. A flocked fibercomprising a fibrous textile substrate having a fiber maze extendingtherefrom, an adhesive layer disposed above said substrate andencapsulating said fiber maze, and flock fibers embedded in andextending out from the upper surface of said adhesive layer, saidadhesive layer making only limited contact with said fibrous textilesubstrate such that the tear strength of the flocked fabric is at least80 percent of the tear strength of the fibrous textile substrate alone.19. A flocked fabric in accordance with claim 18 wherein said adhesivelayer encapulates said fiber maze such that the maze extends all the waythrough the adhesive layer from the bottom surface to the top surfacethereof.
 20. A flocked fabric in accordance with claim 18 wherein theaverage length of each fiber in said maze is at least twice as great asthe thickness of said adhesive layer.
 21. A flocked fabric in accordancewith claim 18 wherein the average length of each fiber in said maze isat least five times as great as the thickness of said adhesive layer.22. In a flocked fabric having an adhesive layer and flock fibersembedded in and extending out from the upper surface thereof, theimprovement comprising a fibrous maze contained within and forreinforcing said adhesive layer.
 23. A flocked fabric in accordance withclaim 22 wherein the average length of each fiber in said maze is atleast twice as great as the thickness of said adhesive layer.
 24. Aflocked fabric in accordance with claim 22 wherein the average length ofeach fiber in said maze is at least five times as great as the thicknessof said adhesive layer.
 25. A flocked fabric in accordance with claim 24wherein said fibrous maze is contained within said adhesive layer fromthe bottom to the top surfaces thereof.
 26. A flocked fabric inaccordance with claim 22 wherein said fibrous maze is continued withinsaid adhesive layer from the bottom to the top surfaces thereof.
 27. Aflocked fabric in accordance with claim 26 wherein the fibers in saidmaze are progressively intertangled from the bottoms to the topsthereof.
 28. A method for making a flocked fabric comprising the stepsof forming a backing having a fibrous maze extending therefrom, saidfibrous maze having a density sufficient to prevent subsequently appliedadhesive from substantially pEnetrating therethrough to said backing,applying an adhesive layer to the surface of said backing from whichsaid fibrous maze extends, and embedding flock fibers in the uppersurface of said adhesive layer.
 29. A method for making a flocked fabricin accordance with claim 28 wherein the flock fibers embedded in saidadhesive layer have a velvet appearance and the viscosity of saidadhesive is in the range 35,000 - 65,000 centipoise, as measured on aBrookfield viscometer using a No. 4 spindle rotating at 6 rpm.
 30. Amethod for making a flocked fabric in accordance with claim 28 whereinthe flock fibers embedded in said adhesive layer have a suede appearanceand the viscosity of said adhesive is in the range 60,000-120,000centipoise, as measured on a Brookfield viscometer using a No. 4 spindlerotating at 6 rpm.
 31. A method for making a flocked fabric inaccordance with claim 28 wherein said backing is a yarn-based fabric andsaid fibrous maze is formed by napping a surface thereof.
 32. A methodfor making a flocked fabric in accordance with claim 31 wherein saidfibrous maze extends above said backing a distance which is greater thanthe thickness of the adhesive layer subsequently applied to saidbacking, and said fibrous maze is caused to be substantially completelyencapsulated by said adhesive layer when it is applied to said backing.33. A method for making a flocked fabric in accordance with claim 28wherein said fibrous maze extends above said backing a distance which isgreater than the thickness of the adhesive layer subsequently applied tosaid backing, and said fibrous maze is caused to be substantiallycompletely encapsulated by said adhesive layer when it is applied tosaid backing.
 34. A method for making a flocked fabric in accordancewith claim 28 wherein said fibrous maze is formed such that the averagelength of a fiber therein is at least twice as great as the thickness ofthe subsequently applied adhesive layer.
 35. A method for making aflocked fabric in accordance with claim 28 wherein said fibrous maze isformed such that the average length of a fiber therein is at least fivetimes as great as the thickness of the subsequently applied adhesivelayer.
 36. A method for making a flocked fabric in accordance with claim28 wherein the density of said fibrous maze is high enough and theviscosity of the applied adhesive is low enough to sufficiently preventthe applied adhesive from penetrating through said fibrous maze to saidbacking such that the tear strength of the flocked fabric is at least 80percent of the tear strength of said backing alone.
 37. A method formaking a flocked fabric in accordance with claim 28 wherein the densityof said fibrous maze is high enough and the viscosity of the appliedadhesive is low enough to sufficiently prevent the applied adhesive frompenetrating through said fibrous maze to said backing such that the tearstrength of the flocked fabric is greater than the tear strength of saidbacking alone.
 38. A method for making a flocked fabric in accordancewith claim 28 wherein said adhesive layer is applied to said backingsuch that said fibrous maze extends all the way through the adhesivelayer from the bottom surface to the top surface thereof.
 39. In amethod for making a flocked fabric in which flock fibers are embedded inand extend out from the upper surface of an adhesive layer, theimprovement comprising the step of encapsulating a fibrous maze withinand for reinforcing said adhesive layer.
 40. A method for making aflocked fabric in accordance with claim 39 wherein the average length ofeach fiber in said maze is at least twice as great as the thickness ofsaid adhesive layer.
 41. A method for making a flocked fabric inaccordance with claim 39 wherein the average length of each fiber insaid maze is at least five times as great as the thickness of saidadhesive layer.
 42. A method for making a flocked fabric in accoRdancewith claim 39 wherein said fibrous maze is made to extend from the lowersurface of said adhesive layer through said adhesive layer to the uppersurface thereof.
 43. A method for making a flocked fabric in accordancewith claim 39 wherein the fibers in said maze are controlled to beprogressively intertangled from the bottoms to the tops thereof.